Life After Death Old Version
by matronmalicemizer
Summary: Asuka survives Third Impact. But now she finds the world reborn as an image of its past self. [AxR in later chapters.]
1. Chapter 1

This story was created in response to a challenge issued by a few people over at The corresponding thread can be found here: http/ As such, there will be shoujo-ai (female/female pairing) at some point in this story.

Also, this story takes place after End of Eva. Therefore, it contains a few slight spoilers. That being said...

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**Chapter 1**

The world had forgotten. The world had been torn apart and rebuilt by one person. And no one seemed to remember it.

No one, that is, except a single girl. She had been at the center of it all. She had seen Armageddon. She had seen Third Impact lay waste to an entire civilization. She had awakened on a beach of white bordering a sea of red. At one point, she could have sworn the Third Child had tried to kill her. However tiredness overwhelmed her, and when she awoke once more, there was no sign of him. There was no sign of the horrors that greeted her tired eye the first time. Her wounds were healed. The world was healed. Yet everything was so very different.

Japan was hardly a welcoming place anymore, so she had caught a boat to America. And that was where she found herself now.

"What the hell is going on around this place?" the Second Child, Asuka, grumbled to herself. She straightened her long, dark brown coat, which covered a light brown top with a hint of yellow to it. This lead down to a denim skirt held up by a thick leather belt with two holsters and accompanying pistols. The cowboy boots that covered her feet and hat that sat atop her head matched her coat.

She currently loitered in a saloon that reminded her of the Western gunslinger movies that seemed so popular with Americans a few decades earlier. In fact, the entire world seemed to be placed in a similar time frame. And among the items that defined the era in which the girl now found herself, a group of wanted posters stood out the most.

One in particular stared Asuka in the face. The poster depicted a young girl with light, chin-length hair, almost white skin, and deep, penetrating eyes. Bold letters across the bottom proclaimed the girl to be Rei Ayanami and promised a hefty reward for the girl. Even if returned dead.

Asuka turned her attention from the poster and began to trudge across the saloon to the bar at the back of the room. She ignored the few other patrons that chatted noisily amongst themselves. She had more important business.

"Hey," she demanded of the barkeep. "You put up those posters?"

The bartender, a man whose size assured his patrons he needed no bouncer, turned his attention away from the customer he was talking to. He glanced over the redhead. "Ain't you a little young to be in a place like this?" he asked gruffly.

Asuka's eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "I asked a question. Did you put up those posters?"

The bartender regarded Asuka skeptically, before nodding his head a little. "Yeah. I put 'em up."

Without turning around, the Second Child pointed to the poster of Rei. "Her. What's she wanted for?"

"Ain't no nevermind to me," said the bartender with a light laugh and a shrug of his shoulders. "The sheriff tells me to put 'em up, I put 'em up. And if the bounties are brought back here, of course," the bartender added with a slow grin, "I get a bit of the cut."

Asuka turned her head to look back at the poster again. "What have you gotten yourself into now?" she muttered under her breath. She looked back to the bartender. "So there's nothing you can tell me about that girl?"

"All I know is that she's been seen out to the east," he commented as he distracted himself by wiping down the bar in front of him.

"'East' doesn't help me, idiot. How _far_ east?" she asked, the level of her voice catching the glances of a few patrons seated nearby.

The bartender looked up at the girl and frowned. "Now listen here. I've humored your questions, little girl. If you're gonna act like that, you can leave."

Asuka restrained herself from growling at the man who was so obviously far below her own intellect. "Excuse me. I'm just a little frustrated from traveling for so long," she said through clenched teeth. "How far east should I go to find her?"

"Not more than a couple days, I'd guess. But you gotta realize, all the stuff's been said about her is just speculation. Otherwise, somebody else probably would've already got her."

The Second Child nodded once. "Right," she said as she began to contemplate the easiest way of traveling out of this town. "Do you know where I can get a ca--er," she shook her head, catching herself, "a horse? Preferably one that's cheap."

This received quite a laugh from the barkeep. He shook his head as his laughter died away. "'Fraid not. Horses ain't cheap out this far."

With a sigh of annoyance, Asuka responded, "I was afraid of that." She turned away from the bar and began her march for the doors. "Well, if you want your money, you better hope somebody else gets to her before I do."

Before the bartender could respond, she was gone. He simply shook his head and went back to cleaning up the bar.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Asuka grumbled lowly as she found herself trudging into another town. She had set out to the east of the previous village and now found herself in a similarly rustic town. Luckily, a cool autumn breeze countered the blazing sun that even still beat down on her. Immediately she looked for a place to find food and drink.

As she made her way into the middle of town, she found a large saloon standing proudly amongst other buildings that paled in comparison. Her eyes lit up as she dashed into the structure.

An open table near the bar grabbed her attention. She sat down and quickly called out for help from the wait staff.

"Can I get you something?" came a cheerful voice from a beautiful waitress. She had long, flowing black hair and a black and red dress that was just high enough to not brush the ground.

As Asuka looked up to the woman, her eyes widened. "Misato!" she blurted.

"Yes?" asked the woman as she tilted her head. "Have we met?"

"C'mon, Misato. You know me." Upon the blank stare she received, Asuka continued, "I'm Asuka. We worked together at NERV! It wasn't _that_ long ago."

"I'm sorry," Misato replied with an apologetic look. "I think you must have me confused with someone else. That is my name, but I've never worked at this... NERV, you said it was?"

Asuka frowned angrily. "What, do you have amnesia or something?" she demanded.

"Like I said, you must have mistaken me for someone else. I've lived here all my life." Misato tried to dismiss the girl's weird attitude by changing the subject. "Can I get you something to eat or drink? Maybe you're delirious from being out in the sun too long."

"I'm not delirious!" Asuka barked. "But if you're so insistent, I would like to place an order. Bring me the best meal you serve and the biggest glass of water you can find in this dump."

Misato blinked, feeling defensive. But instead of arguing with a customer, she decided to merely grit her teeth. "Yes, miss." She turned and walked toward the door behind the bar.

With Misato gone, Asuka suddenly found herself feeling more lost than before. Why didn't Misato remember her? Was there something wrong with everyone else, or was there something wrong with her? She shook her head slightly, clearing away the thought. Nothing could be wrong with her.

She took the moment to observe the surroundings. The saloon appeared no different than any of the others she had been in, minus a few cosmetic changes. However she did find another set of posters posted along one of the walls. And again, Ayanami's picture was among them. Asuka examined the poster carefully, taking careful note of the words across the bottom of the page that proclaimed Ayanami had last been seen in a cabin a distance to the north of the town.

_At least that's more information than I had before,_ Asuka thought. _Now I just have to make sure I find this cabin before anyone else gets there._

Once Misato returned with Asuka's food and drink, the red head decided to see if she could garner any information from the waitress. "Excuse me, do you have any information on her?" she asked with a gesture to the poster depicting Rei.

Misato considered the poster for several long seconds before taking a seat at Asuka's table. As Asuka began to tear into her food ravenously, Misato said, "I'm not really sure about her. People say she's the most wanted person in these parts, but she's managed to elude most of the really skilled bounty hunters around here. I don't think it was stated that she's dangerous." Misato put her hand to her chin thoughtfully. "I know there's a really famous bounty hunter after her now. I think he might stand a chance of getting her. He's the quickest shot around here."

"So you think this guy's good at what he does?" Asuka asked through a mouth full of food.

Misato wrinkled her nose slightly, seeming put off by Asuka's bad manners. "Well, everyone who's ever seen him in action says he can't be beaten. I haven't seen him myself, though."

Asuka nodded as she finished off her food. She quickly chugged down the entire glass of water, feeling refreshed. Upon setting down the glass, Asuka looked at Misato's face, considering her carefully. "So you really have no memory of ever meeting me?"

"I'm afraid not," Misato said with the same apologetic smile she had offered earlier.

_That means Rei probably won't remember me, either. Then I'm no closer to getting any answers than I was when I was in Japan._ Asuka frowned to herself. Her gaze slid to the side to look at the wanted poster. She scanned over it slowly for several seconds. _Though if she doesn't remember me,_ Asuka thought as a grin spread across her face, _I can just claim the bounty on her without worrying about losing any information._

Asuka turned back to Misato and smiled brightly. "Well, thanks a lot! You've been a big help." The Second Child jumped to her feet and started for the door.

Misato just stared at the girl. Once Asuka was almost half way to the door, she got to her feet. "Hey, wait! You didn't pay!"

Asuka blinked, gulped, and called over her shoulder, "Put it on my tab!" She then sprinted out the door as fast as her feet could carry her.

Misato growled loudly, "Get back here!" And, in a manner that was completely unladylike, she gave chase to the fleeing thief.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Travelling by foot wasn't Asuka's cup of tea. Having outrun Misato, Asuka had fled into the desert. She trudged, thirsty and tired, through the sun scorched land. The sky blazed a vibrant orange as the sun made its way west, but the heat still beat down upon the girl's shoulders.

She felt as though she had been walking for hours. Only recently had any sign of civilization come into view. It was only a single house, but Asuka was sure she could talk the owner into sparing her lodging for the night. Who could possibly turn her away?

As she began to near the house, it became clear that this was a solitary cabin in the middle of nowhere. Asuka briefly thought back to the wanted poster and began to increase her speed. A horse stood tethered to a post of the porch of the fairly small cabin. The house itself seemed to be well tended and in good condition.

She slowed as she stood a few yards from the porch. A girl sat on the porch, clutching a bleeding leg. She grumbled to herself as she tied a cloth around the wound. Judging from the state of her shirt, the scrap of clothing had previously been a sleeve. She looked up as she heard Asuka approach.

"What do you want?" she demanded angrily. The girl, by Asuka's estimation, must have been in her late teens. Shaggy cyan hair ran down to her shoulders. Other than that, from the details Asuka skimmed over, she seemed to wear otherwise standard garb for the time and place.

Asuka's eye twitched in slight annoyance. "Who lives here?" she said in an equally demanding voice.

The girl gave a light laugh as she stood up. Her sweaty face took on a pained expression as she tried to avoid putting weight on her bleeding leg. "A criminal. But don't worry, she's been taken care of." The girl started to make her way very slowly toward the horse.

"Oh?" Asuka replied simply.

"Yeah. My... 'partner' already took her in for the bounty on her head." She shook her head. "You're a little late if you're looking for the bounty, too."

"Ayanami's gone?" Asuka took stock of the girl's condition, then asked, "She put up a fight?"

"Yep," she responded. "And nope. She didn't put up no fight. My own partner did this to me." Her teeth clenched and her jaw seized up as she growled, "He shot me and figured he could get all the bounty to himself."

"Is your partner the guy that's rumored to be unbeatable?"

The girl turned to regard Asuka straight on. Her arm twitched slightly as she sized Asuka up. "Just so you know, I plan on gettin' that girl from my partner. And you ain't gonna stand in my way."

Asuka noticed the change in the girl's posture. And for the first time, she got a close look at her. The thing that stood out to Asuka most was the girl's tie. It was a simple leather bolo tie with generic silver studs at the ends. The clasp, however, was a circle with an almost beak-like triangle pointing downwards from it. Two round indentations were colored in with black to appear almost like eyes amongst the round shape. Her mind flashed brieftly to images from footage shown to her when she first arrived at NERV.

Asuka's eyes widened slightly as she mumbled, "Sachiel."

At the whispered name, Sachiel's eyes narrowed. Her hand suddenly moved for her gun. Asuka's reflexes kicked in and, quicker than even her own mind registered, her right hand pulled one of her six shooters from its position at her hip. Her left and right hands moved in concert as the right hand brought the hammer of the gun quickly into her left hand. As the heel of her left hand slammed back the hammer, her right index finger flexed against the trigger. And before Sachiel could register the move or even finish drawing her own gun, her white shirt began to grow red. She turned her eyes down to the wound in her chest.

"Well, damn." She turned her eyes back to Asuka and smirked faintly. "You might just be able to beat him. Give him an extra bullet for me." With that statement, Sachiel fell to the ground.

Asuka watched in silence as the girl fell to the ground. She looked down at the gun in her hand before returning it to its holster. The Second Child let out a long, slow breath as she made her way to the body of the first enemy she had made in this new world. She knelt down and looked over the girl.

Without that tie, Asuka never would have guessed this could possibly be the reincarnation of an Angel. The redhead slowly lifted up the fallen girl and removed the tie from around her neck. She slipped it into one of the many pockets on her coat then stood back up. For the first time since coming to America, the gravity and scope of how much things had changed really hit her. She took several steps away from the cabin, noticing that the sky was already growing a deep purple. She gazed across the sand that seemed so endless from this place.

Asuka took in a deep breath and screamed angrily to the desert, "What the hell is with this place! Shinji, you bastard! What did you do to this world!"

She stared solemnly into the distance, moisture at the edge of her eyes. The frustrations of being able to do nothing and the anger at Shinji's cowardice were wearing away at her. She let out a deep sigh as she gazed eastward into the heavens at the stars beginning to appear there.

"What happened to everything?" she asked in a quieter tone.

Her head tilted downward as she started to head back toward the cabin. As she did so, she glanced once more to Sachiel's body. "I guess I should rest before going after Ayanami." She smiled sadly toward the corpse. "I hope you don't mind if I borrow your horse."

Asuka stepped through the door to the cabin, welcoming the shelter from the elements. At least she wouldn't have to face the cold this night.


End file.
